Lin Ruifeng can be said to be full of energy, probably because his parents and sister came to visit him, which made him more motivated.
In the next few days, Lin Ruifeng spent the day in his own shop, cooking various delicious dishes for his family.
Lin Ruifeng's parents, sister and brother-in-law were all delighted to see his obvious progress.
Even his little nephew Wang Chenchen gave a thumbs up and praised his uncle after eating his uncle's food.
"My uncle's cooking is so delicious, better than what my parents cook, and as good as what my grandparents cook. My uncle is really amazing."
Lin Ruifeng was actually a little proud of himself after receiving praise from his little nephew.
However, in the next two days, he also faced a test.
Because the next group of judges were no longer people Lin Ruifeng was familiar with, but people Ma Xiaolong was familiar with, and it could even be said that they were somewhat biased towards Ma Xiaolong.
This batch of judges consists of three foreigners.
The only woman among them was a very beautiful and capable woman.
The other two men were muscular, and in Lin Ruifeng's opinion, one of them might be even taller and fatter than Feng Yifan, with a full beard and a bald head. The remaining man was much more handsome, and seemed even less muscular than Ma Xiaolong, but he had blond hair and blue eyes and a handsome face.
Ma Xiaolong was also very surprised to see the three people appear.
"Oh, Catherine, Tom, Hans, how come you are here?"
Catherine smiled and replied, "The chef asked us to come here. The chef said that you set up a stall here and wanted to compete with his apprentice. Are you bullying others?"
The two sides communicated directly in a foreign language. Ma Xiaolong smiled and said, "I didn't bully others. I should be lagging behind them now."
The tall and fat Hans said, "John, you are so weak that you lost to such a rookie."
Handsome Tom said: "Hans, you can't say that. If he can be the chef's apprentice, he must have his own skills. We should respect all our opponents."
Hans looked nonchalantly at Lin Ruifeng in the next stall and said with disdain, "He's just a pretty boy. He doesn't look like a chef at all. I dare say he can't even take a punch from me."
Catherine immediately warned: "Fat Hans, do you want to be beaten? Be careful that the chef comes back and beats you back."
When Hans heard Catherine mention Feng Yifan, he immediately became timid and dared not to shout anymore.
Ma Xiaolong was very happy to see the three people and asked them how they were doing recently. He also introduced the barbecue fried rice he made at his stall to them.
"Fried rice is the most traditional Chinese delicacy. It is also available in almost all restaurants abroad, but you have definitely never had it. My authentic Chinese fried rice and my improved rotisserie meat, paired with my fried rice, will definitely make your three mouths blossom."
Hans curled his lips and said, "Humph, bragging. John, you've become good at bragging since you came back."
Ma Xiaolong said seriously: "This is not bragging. You can check online. My barbecue fried rice is very popular. Many people come to eat it every day. They post new videos and photos, and many people forward them. My fans are about to exceed 100,000."
Tom listened and said, "Fan effect, this is not a good thing."
Catherine followed suit, "Yes, the chef doesn't like it."
Ma Xiaolong said disapprovingly: "The chef is not here, and I didn't cut corners. My barbecue fried rice is really delicious. If you don't believe me, try it."
Catherine nodded and said, "Of course we have to try it. We are the judges."
Then Catherine asked Tom and Hans to wait at Ma Xiaolong's place while she went to Lin Ruifeng's stall to buy.
"Hello, my name is Catherine. Are you the chef's apprentice?"
Because Catherine spoke a foreign language, Lin Ruifeng didn't understand what she said at first, but he understood the first greeting of "Hello".
Fortunately, Shen Qingluo was there today. Seeing that Lin Ruifeng didn’t understand what was said later, he quickly came over to explain.
"She said her name was Catherine, and asked if you were the chef's apprentice?"
Lin Ruifeng was a little surprised: "The chef's apprentice? Who is the chef she's talking about?"
Shen Qingluo did not translate, but directly said: "Can't you guess this? The chef she mentioned must be your master. You see, she talked so much with those two foreigners and Ma Xiaolong just now. They must have been the chefs who followed your master in the past."
After saying this, Shen Qingluo looked at the other party and asked, "Have you followed Chef Feng like Ma Xiaolong?"
Catherine nodded: "Yes, we used to work for the chef."
After listening to Shen Qingluo's translation, Lin Ruifeng asked excitedly: "Have you all ever won three stars with my master?"
After Shen Qingluo translated, Catherine smiled and said, "It wasn't us who won three stars together with the chef, but the chef led us to get the restaurant three stars. Without the chef, none of us would have that ability. Now only Hans is still in that three-star restaurant."
Speaking of this, Catherine also gave Lin Ruifeng an introduction.
What surprised Lin Ruifeng and Shen Qingluo was that Hans, who looked tall and strong, was actually a pastry chef.
And Tom is a professional wine taster.
As for Catherine, she was Feng Yifan's real sous chef in the past, but her job was more about styling creativity. As for cooking innovation, it mainly depended on Feng Yifan himself, with more assistance from Ma Xiaolong.
After listening to Catherine's introduction, Lin Ruifeng, Shen Qingluo and others had some understanding of Feng Yifan's former kitchen.
I learned that there are so many different divisions of labor in the kitchen, which is similar to the kitchens of large restaurants in China.
The difference is that chefs who are responsible for different divisions of labor will more often need to take on some overlapping responsibilities instead of simply being responsible for their own part.
Catherine explained: "This is only possible under the chef. The chef is a very demanding person. He requires us to have comprehensive abilities. Otherwise, we will be fired at any time or replaced by others. We can only do odd jobs or be kicked out of the restaurant."
Through Catherine's narration, Lin Ruifeng gained a better understanding of the strictness of his former master.
It is not difficult to see that the former master was indeed very strict.
After introducing them, Catherine said to Lin Ruifeng, "Okay, we want to taste your fried rice. Please give it your best try."
Lin Ruifeng still didn't forget, so he asked Shen Qingluo to help him react and asked the other three people about their tastes.
Catherine was somewhat surprised to be asked this question. She looked at Lin Ruifeng deeply, and then told him the taste preferences of the three of them.
Lin Ruifeng also listened calmly, and then began to make fried rice according to the tastes of the three people.
The efficiency was relatively fast. By the time Ma Xiaolong finished installing the other side, Lin Ruifeng had also completed the three plates.
The three foreign judges were quite satisfied with the efficiency of both parties.
Hans even teased Ma Xiaolong: "John, I didn't lose to you. You should work harder."
Ma Xiaolong responded with a smile: "I said, I never think I can crush the opponent, so I am very serious every time."
The three people did not continue talking, but began to judge seriously.
First, the three of them observed together and carefully compared the appearance of the two different fried rices.
In terms of appearance, Hans and Catherine prefer Ma Xiaolong's. They think that Ma Xiaolong's way of putting fried rice into a kraft paper box and then shaping it into a rice ball is very creative.
The reason why Tom prefers the appearance of Lin Ruifeng's fried rice is that he feels that Lin Ruifeng's is more in line with fried rice and does not lose a simple beauty.
Then the three of them sniffed the smell again, and this time Ma Xiaolong still won. Hans and Tom both preferred the smell of meat after Ma Xiaolong's barbecue and fried rice were combined.
But Catherine prefers Lin Ruifeng's fried rice, which has the aroma of rice mixed with some flavors of onions and garlic.
Finally, they started to taste the food. The three of them ate two servings of fried rice almost at the same time.
After tasting it, the three people had slightly different expressions, but they all fell silent, and no one spoke to comment.
They finished the two servings of fried rice in silence, then the three of them said goodbye to Lin Ruifeng and Ma Xiaolong and left.
Lin Ruifeng and Ma Xiaolong were both a little confused about why he left without saying a word
Shen Qingluo was also very curious: "What does this mean? Not saying a word? Just leaving after eating? Weren't everyone still talking and laughing just now? What's wrong with this?"
Zhao Daxia asked with a smile: "Are these three people sick?"
Shen Qingluo laughed after hearing this: "Well, Aunt Zhao is right, maybe he really has some disease."
Lin Ruifeng still had a serious face and muttered: "Maybe he was not satisfied with our fried rice? He thought it was too unpalatable? So he ran to find a place to vomit?"
Shen Qingluo patted Lin Ruifeng and said, "Can you please stop being so depressed when you open your mouth?"
Lin Ruifeng laughed and said, "Alright, alright, don't worry about what they are doing. Let's continue with our business. We are getting busy. Haven't you seen people starting to come into the small market?"
In the following time, Lin Ruifeng seemed to be fine and was still as busy as every day.
Seeing him busy, Shen Qingluo and Zhao Daxia were both a little surprised.
When Lin's father and mother, who had just returned from their trip, and Lin Yanmei's family entered the small market, Lin Ruifeng was really smiling. He kept arranging seats for his parents, sister, brother-in-law, and little nephew, and even bought barbecue fried rice for his little nephew from Ma Xiaolong.
Of course, in addition to the two fried rice restaurants, there are many other things to eat at the night market, and Lin Ruifeng also bought them for his nephew.
Wang Chenchen was eating happily. His two little cheeks were bulging with food. He kept saying as he ate: "Uncle is so nice. Chenchen hopes to come to play with uncle every day."
Seeing her brother's look and hearing her son's words, Lin Yanmei didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "You little brat, you still want your uncle to buy you this every day? Then the money your uncle earns every day is probably not enough for you to eat. And can you eat what's in your mouth first before you talk?"
After hearing what his mother said, Wang Chenchen sat down obediently and ate the food in his mouth.
Lin Yanmei looked at her brother who had returned to the stall and was still busy. She vaguely felt that her brother's behavior today was a little strange.
Lin Ruifeng and Ma Xiaolong were so busy until the night market was almost over. Suddenly, the two of them made fried rice for each other and then sat opposite each other in tacit understanding.
After sitting down, Ma Xiaolong said with a smile: "It seems that both of us are losers today."
Lin Ruifeng smiled and said, "I should lose, or your fried rice is more popular with everyone."
Ma Xiaolong waved his hand and said, "Don't give me that. Your fried rice is the real fried rice. Mine is just some fancy gimmicks. If the chef sees it, he will probably criticize me severely and throw all my things into the street."
When Lin Ruifeng heard this, he asked curiously, "Master, was he really that strict in the past?"
Ma Xiaolong nodded: "Of course. You have to know that in the kitchen at that time, he was an absolute tyrant who had the final say. No one dared to disobey him. For each of his dishes, no one could change any detail of his steps. Even the combination of the plating was not allowed to be changed."
Lin Ruifeng thought of Catherine and asked, "That Catherine before, wasn't she responsible for the creative presentation of the dishes?"
Ma Xiaolong said: "Yes, she is the creative person in styling the dishes, but her ideas need to be approved by the chef before they can be used. Most of the time, she is just an assistant, responsible for completing the dishes ordered by the chef, because she is really fast."
Lin Ruifeng asked seriously: "Then, did Master attack you at the beginning?"
Ma Xiaolong was stunned for a moment when he heard Lin Ruifeng ask this, then he smiled and said, "Do it? Ask Hans about this, he should be able to give you a satisfactory answer, that is what he learned with blood and tears. Don't look at his big size, in front of the chef, he is just a big sandbag."
As soon as Ma Xiaolong finished speaking, a voice suddenly rang out: "Hey, it's wrong to say bad things behind someone's back."
Hearing the sound, Lin Ruifeng and Ma Xiaolong looked up together and saw the three people coming back.
Ma Xiaolong was stunned for a moment and said to Hans, "I didn't lie. Do you dare to say that anything I said was wrong? You are really no match for the chef."
Hans was somewhat helpless: "Well, I can't afford to offend the chef."
Although he didn't understand what Hans said, seeing Hans spread his hands helplessly, Lin Ruifeng could probably guess what Hans meant.
Shen Qingluo came over and asked directly, "Why did you three run away after eating? Don't you think it's very rude? Shouldn't you tell the two contestants what kind of evaluation you three will give in the end? Let us all feel at ease."
Catherine stepped forward and said with an elegant smile, "The fried rice you two made was delicious. The three of us couldn't tell who was the winner, so we simply didn't discuss the result. We could only eat and run."
Lin Ruifeng and Ma Xiaolong were both a little surprised.
Lin Ruifeng asked first: "Is it hard to tell who is better between the two of us in making fried rice?"
Tom said, "Yes, in all aspects, you three are the best among the three of us. Your fried rice is unique. Although Lin's is not as fancy as John's, it tastes just as good as his. So, you two are the best among the three of us."
After Shen Qingluo translated it for Lin Ruifeng, Lin Ruifeng and Ma Xiaolong looked at each other.
At this moment, the two people understood that they were still at the same starting line. What remains to be seen is what kind of judgment Feng Yifan would give them in the end.